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Xenon the Antiquarian
} |name = Xenon |icon = Character record icon da2.png |image = XenonTheAntiquarian.png |px = 270px |gender = Male |race = Human |title = Antiquarian |location = The Black Emporium |voice = Nicholas Boulton |appearances = Dragon Age II Dragon Age: Inquisition Heroes of Dragon Age }} Xenon the Antiquarian is the owner of the Black Emporium, located deep under the streets of Kirkwall. Background Xenon is an ancient being who is approximately 300 years old.Codex entry: Xenon the Antiquarian He was once a Kirkwall nobleman living in the Steel Age. Extremely wealthy, and equally arrogant, he believed that someone as high-ranking as himself should not have to succumb to death, and so spent many years and a large amount of his fortune in search of a way to live forever. Eventually, he found an Antivan Witch of the Wilds, and made a deal with her to attain eternal life. She granted him his wish, but he, unfortunately, forgot also to ask for eternal youth. His body withered and decayed over the centuries. Xenon used his fortune in an attempt to preserve his body using mystical and dangerous means, but no method has ever been successful. Finally no longer able to move on his own, he went into hiding in the Undercity and began collecting strange and rare artifacts. He extends invitations to his shop only to people he deems worthy: those who have enough money to fund his search for a cure against aging. The many servants who take care of him still hunt to find a way to reverse the effects of aging and return him to his once youthful state. Xenon is immobile and uses a magical artifact to imitate speech since he lost the ability to speak. He sits in the center of his emporium and appears to have an excess of limbs. He is bathed hourly to keep his body from drying up. Involvement Dragon Age II Xenon sends Hawke a letter at the beginning of Act 1, an invitation to The Black Emporium, along with instructions on navigating the Undercity to reach the shop and a charm that acts as a pass.Letter: The Black Emporium At Hawke's initial visit to the Black Emporium, Xenon is excited to have a customer. He keeps an urchin boy as his assistant, and a stone golem, Thaddeus Gigantus Crumbum the Third, provides security and theft protection. Xenon claims Thaddeus is his "favorite". In each act, more of Xenon's artifacts become available in The Black Emporium to unlock codex entries, and Xenon adds new items to his inventories. Dragon Age: Inquisition Years later, Xenon extends an invitation to the Inquisition to come and partake of his wares. Though the golem does not seem to be present when the Inquisitor visits, they do encounter a miniaturized bear named Chauncey that Xenon has acquired from a Magister sometime in the past few years. Xenon's servants have apparently been busy over the last few years acquiring many new artifacts and items, including legendary crafting schematics, and rare armor, weapons, and accessories. Quotes Dragon Age II * "The Templars sometimes come here, you know. The blood stains take just weeks to clean up. Poor Thaddeus." * "Some Dane fellow asked, "Why make a shop so hard to find?" I mean, really! He just has no concept." * "Few people are worthy of an invitation, you know. They search the sewers for the emporium and accost poor urchin. And I tell urchin to say, 'No! You are not worthy. Starve in the sewers!' Except urchin never speaks." * "Don't manhandle the Urchin, he's not for sale. Find your own!" Dragon Age: Inquisition * "I have quite an extensive library on the history of forbidden magic. It's back there. Somewhere. I... think. I haven't been able to turn my head to look for two centuries." * "You may pet the tiny bear, but be gentle. A magister miniaturized him specially at great cost. He answers to 'Chauncey.'" * "Help yourself to a sock from the basket. But only one!" * "Watch your step. We received a shipment of invisible nugs the other day." See also Trivia * Xenon's story of immortality is likely based on Tithonus, the lover of the Greek Goddess Eos from Greek mythology. Eos asked Zeus to make Tithonus immortal but, like Xenon, forgot to ask for eternal youth. He then aged until he became nothing more than a grasshopper, which Eos kept in a box. * Xenon is referenced in BioWare's Anthem video game. The bar in Fort Tarsis was formerly named the Black Emporium and the current owner, Max, scarcely recalls her predecessor was named Xeno, who was struck by lightning. * His voice and some of his quotes resemble that and those of Darth Sidious, better known as Palpatine or the Evil Emperor from Star Wars. He seems to have a fascination with dark power and objects, hence also the Sith Crone similarities. * He is against the Red Templars finding his shop claiming "they'd just break everything". Gallery Xenon-the-Antiquarian.jpg|Concept art Xenon DAI.png|Xenon in 9:41 Dragon XenonHoDA.png|Xenon in Heroes of Dragon Age References Category:Characters Category:Dragon Age II characters Category:Dragon Age: Inquisition characters Category:Humans Category:Free Marchers Category:Dragon Age II merchants Category:Heroes of Dragon Age characters